In a game where a whole lot went right for Virginia and a whole lot went wrong for Louisville, one statistic stands out — seven of the eight runs scored by the boys in orange and blue were unearned. That was the core of an 8-3 win.
The Cavaliers (35-18, 14-14 ACC) also rode a dominant start from sophomore pitcher Henry Zatkowski and quelled the Cardinals (28-26, 11-17 ACC) in at-bats with runners in scoring position. But above all else, Virginia took advantage of ugly errors by Louisville — plating several runs as a result of elementary mistakes.
Meanwhile, Zatkowski tossed six innings of one-run baseball. He did allow eight baserunners but shut the Cardinals down time and time again with runners in scoring position. Zatkowski also racked up six strikeouts.
Also of note, star junior shortstop Eric Becker returned to the lineup for the first time in nearly a month. He made his presence known through a 3-6 day at the plate. Becker recorded three of the eight total Cavalier hits plus their only extra-base knock.
“Welcome back Eric Becker,” Coach Chris Pollard said postgame. “What an incredible job stepping back in after being out for close to a month. He played an unbelievable ballgame.”
Virginia jumped on sophomore starter Ethan Eberle quickly, conjuring two walks and four hits in the game’s first two innings. All that traffic, combined with a fielding error from junior shortstop Alex Alicea, led to a 3-0 Cavalier lead.
Alicea’s error was a costly one — Virginia already had the bases loaded, and quickly plated some runners thanks to the error plus a two-RBI single from junior second baseman Joe Tiroly.
The Cavaliers continued to dial up the pressure on Eberle in the top of the third inning. Junior catcher Jake Weatherspoon walked, senior outfielder Harrison Didawick ripped a sharp single and junior utilityman Kyle Johnson walked as well. Virginia loaded the bases for the second inning in a row.
Eberle almost made a highlight play to escape the jam — he caught a ball off the first bounce with an incredible behind-the-back snag, but then disaster struck for Louisville. Yet another error resulted in two more Cavalier runs as junior catcher Jimmy Nugent could not corral Eberle’s throw to home plate. What could have been a double play for the Cardinals defense ended up leading to a deep deficit.
Coach Dan McDonnell had seen enough. He pulled Eberle after Virginia took a 5-0 lead — all before a single out in the third inning. Unfortunately for Eberle, three of those five runs were unearned as a result of crucial errors.
Louisville did not catch a break after turning to its bullpen. Becker, returning to the lineup for the first time since April 16, ripped an RBI single to advance the Cavalier lead to 6-0.
Virginia continued to benefit from the Cardinals’ errors. Later in the sixth inning, junior outfielder Zion Rose somehow dropped a routine fly ball — gifting a free runner while simultaneously fumbling an ever-valuable out against the potent Cavalier offense. Virginia made Louisville pay, as walks by junior utilityman Antonio Perrotta and sophomore outfielder Zach Jackson led to a free run off of Jackson’s RBI walk. That scenario was born from Rose’s gaffe.
Then, in the bottom of the sixth, the Cardinals had a major chance to retort — loading the bases with just one out. They were in dire need of offense, already trailing 7-0. Louisville only scored one run against Zatkowski in that advantageous scenario.
In the subsequent top of the seventh inning, the Cavaliers took advantage of mental mistakes by their host once more. With runners on the corners and two outs, Virginia opted for a double steal — in which the runner from first intentionally gets caught in between bases while the runner on third sprints home. The strategy against such a play is to either tag the first runner immediately, or let him have second base while focusing on stopping the runner at third.
Louisville did neither. The Cardinals putzed around trying to catch junior outfielder AJ Gracia, all while Becker ran home for a free run. The Cavaliers traded an out for a run — which Louisville could not afford. The result of that trade was a commanding 8-1 Virginia lead after seven innings.
Any hope of a Cardinals comeback was squashed by the Cavaliers turning to their elite graduate reliever duo of Lucas Hartman and Tyler Kapa in the game’s waning innings. Louisville did put up a fight in the eighth inning — scoring a pair of runs thanks to two Virginia errors — but the game’s fate had long been sealed by that point.
“Another incredibly well-pitched game by Henry Zatkowski, and Tyler Kapa was really good there at the end,” Pollard said.
The series resumes Friday at 6 p.m. Virginia will hand the ball to freshman John Paone, the reigning Perfect Game National Freshman of the Week.
Read More
No. 5 Virginia into the Final Four after defeating No. 13 Mississippi State 4-1
By Margaret Piatos | 1 hours agoThe Cavaliers will face a familiar foe in the semifinals in ACC rival and top-seed Wake Forest.
Virginia softball begins the greatest show on dirt in Knoxville this weekend
By Cierra Lyles | 3 hours ago“We’re thankful we get to play another weekend together,” Hardin said. “We’re going to do everything we can to extend our season and stay together as long as possible.”
Breaking the ‘athlete bubble,’ a wrestler found greater purpose
By Lauren Halak | 3 hours ago“[Athletes] shouldn't just be athletes,” Montaperto said. “[There's] so many clubs here, so many interesting things to do here. I know everybody is more than just an athlete, right? More than just their sport.”
